Gare d'Austerlitz () is a station on the Paris Métro, serving Line 5 and forming the eastern terminus of Line 10. The Line 5 station hall, "probably the most atypical of the Paris Métro", is open to the exterior as the rails pass though under the roof of the mainline Gare d'Austerlitz, and forms part of a sinuous elevated section which has been "considered an exceptional work of urban railway insertion".
History The station was opened on 2 June 1906 with the opening of the original section of line 5 between it and Place d'Italie. It was the northern terminus of the line until it was extended to Quai de la Rapée (then called Place Mazas) on 14 July 1906. The line 10 platforms opened on 12 July 1939 when the line was extended from Jussieu.
The metro station was originally named Gare d'Orléans after the Paris terminal of the Orleans Railway which was its reason for being. After the Railway opened in 1900 a new central Paris terminal, the Gare d’Orsay, the original terminal came over time to be called Austerlitz, after the nearby traffic bridge over the Seine, itself named after the 1805 Battle of Austerlitz. Reflecting the evolving popular name for the railway station, the metro station was renamed Gare d'Orléans-Austerlitz on 15 October 1930 and Gare d’Austerlitz on 25 April 1985.: 109 The district (quartier) around the station also came to be known as Austerlitz, but its name remains officially Salpêtrière.
Passenger services Access The station has several entrances: Arrivals and departures Grandes Lignes: escalators and stairs in the station, by RER C Boulevard de l'Hôpital, Rue Buffon side: a staircase at 2 Boulevard de l'Hôpital Boulevard de l'Hôpital, Rue Nicolas-Houël side: a staircase at 6 Boulevard de l'Hôpital Boulevard de l'Hôpital, odd side SNCF Austerlitz station: a stairway Boulevard de l'Hôpital in front of the station entrance Departure court Grandes Lignes: a staircase SNCF Departure Grandes Lignes Quai d'Austerlitz: a staircase SNCF Arrivals Grandes Lignes: escalators and stairs in the station, by the RER C
Station layout
Line 5 platformsSouthbound← toward Place d'Italie Northbound toward Bobigny – Pablo Picasso → B1Mezzanine for line 5 platform connection Street Level B1Mezzanine for line 10 platform connection Line 10 platformsWestbound← toward Boulogne – Pont de Saint-Cloud Eastbound Alighting passengers only →
Bus and other connections
The station is served by Lines 24, 57, 61, 63, 89, 91 and 215 of the RATP Bus Network. It is also served by the OpenTour tourist line. In addition, it is served at night by Lines N01, N02, N31, N131 and N133 of the Noctilien bus network. The line offered a connection with the Voguéo river line between 2008 and 2011. The station also offers a connection with Line C of the RER. SNCF trains head towards the southwest of France.
Gallery
References